A NEW TWIST ON SEXUAL POLITICS: SOME DEMOCRATS ARE HINTING THAT THEIR G.O.P. OPPONENTS ARE GAY

Washington thought it was done with gay issues for this year. Congress had passed the Defense of Marriage Act, which allowed states to ban same-sex marriage, and the Senate narrowly defeated a bill to ban antigay job discrimination. But gay politics of a different kind have come back to haunt Republicans and Democrats alike. In recent weeks some Republicans have found that the issue of sexual orientation--specifically their own--has re-entered the campaign. And Democrats are being accused of raising the issue to play to homophobic voters, even while their party presents itself as sympathetic to gay rights.